Attorney General Anne Lopez, along with 21 other attorneys general, has successfully secured a nationwide preliminary injunction in the case of Massachusetts v. NIH. This court order prevents the Trump Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from cutting billions in funding for medical and public health research across U.S. universities and institutions.
Attorney General Lopez stated, "As the court confirmed, the Trump administration’s attempt to cut lifesaving, essential scientific and medical research funding for public health institutions was as illegal as it was arbitrary." She emphasized that courts have consistently ruled against what she described as President Trump's unlawful funding cuts.
University of Hawaiʻi Vice President for Research and Innovation Vassilis Syrmos expressed gratitude for this legal intervention. He highlighted that NIH's proposed funding reductions would have severely impacted the university's research programs, including essential debt service payments for facilities supporting translational research and clinical trials. Syrmos warned of severe negative impacts on communities in Hawaiʻi already facing high rates of chronic diseases.
The state of Hawaiʻi is represented by Special Assistant to the Attorney General Dave Day and Solicitor General Kalikoʻonālani Fernandes. They welcomed the decision, stating it underscores the importance of defending legal principles against federal actions deemed unlawful.
This preliminary injunction ensures continued support for biomedical research infrastructure costs crucial to maintaining America's leadership in medical innovation. The ruling follows a temporary restraining order issued on February 10 by a judge in Massachusetts, which initially blocked NIH's attempts at funding cuts.
The NIH remains a pivotal source of federal medical research funding in the United States, credited with numerous scientific breakthroughs including cancer treatments and DNA sequencing advancements. The coalition challenging these cuts includes attorneys general from states such as Arizona, California, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, among others.